Marthe Keller

A Life in Motion

Marthe Keller was born in Basel, Switzerland, on January 28, 1945. Her early years were shaped by the discipline of dance, as she studied ballet during her childhood. This path changed at age sixteen following a skiing accident that forced her to leave the studio. She turned toward the theatre, spending three years studying at the Stanislavsky School in Munich. This period of training led her to Berlin, where she worked within the Schiller Theatre and the Berliner Ensemble.

Her presence on screen began with uncredited appearances in films like Funeral in Berlin in 1966. As she moved through the late sixties and seventies, her work expanded across borders, moving from German television to the French film industry. She appeared in various productions such as Le diable par la queue and Toute une vie. These years were marked by a steady presence in European cinema, often working alongside established figures of the era.

From Screen to Stage and Opera

The mid-1970s brought her work to a wider audience in Hollywood. A notable role as the girlfriend of Dustin Hoffman in Marathon Man earned her a Golden Globe nomination for Best Supporting Actress. She continued this period with roles in films such as Black Sunday and Bobby Deerfield, appearing alongside Al Pacino. While much of her film career took place in Europe, these American productions brought her face to international screens.

Beyond the camera, her interests moved into the realms of classical music and stage direction. She found a way to engage with opera, directing productions such as Dialogues des Carmélites for the Opéra National du Rhin in 1999. Her work also included directing Lucia di Lammermoor for both the Washington National Opera and the Los Angeles Opera. In the theatre, she appeared on Broadway in 2001 in an adaptation of Judgment at Nuremberg, a performance that earned her a Tony Award nomination for Best Featured Actress.

A Multitude of Roles

Marthe Keller's career is not defined by a single medium but by a variety of disciplines. She has functioned as an actress, a director, and a speaker in classical music settings. Her work in music included performing the speaking role of Joan of Arc in Arthur Honegger’s oratorio Jeanne d'Arc au Bûcher under conductors like Seiji Ozawa and Kurt Masur.

• Acting in films such as Fedora and The Formula.
• Directing opera productions at the Metropolitan Opera.
• Performing in classical music melodramas, including the world premiere of Cassandre by Michael Jarrell.
• Serving as President of the Jury for the Un Certain Regard section at the Cannes Film Festival in 2016.